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The use of hachures—short lines/dashes that give a sense of the shape and steepness of terrain—highlight the mountain ranges along the west coast of this map of Sumatra. Many rivers flow east from the mountains to the Malacca Strait.

A late 19th century map of the Dutch East Indies on four sheets, detailing maritime routes around the region. There are also inset maps showing railways, rivers, roads, and telegraph systems, as well as individual islands and cities.

Six-sheet map of the Malay Peninsula, featuring settlements, mountains and rivers. Labels note names of indigenous peoples, or describe terrain/resources. There is an inset map of Singapore town, and the Straits Settlements are highlighted in red.

A late 19th century map of the town of Malacca and its surrounding area, including jungles, forests, mountains, rivers, roads, villages, tapioca estates and factories, and police stations. There is even a leper hospital on an island off the coast.

This late 19th century map of Southeast Asia shows the best maritime routes around the region, according to the time of year. There are also inset maps highlighting the rivers and southern islands of Singapore, and the sea depth around Labuan Island.

A hand drawn map showing mountains, rivers, roads and settlements in the northern part of the Malay Peninsula belonging to Siam (Thailand). This map was copied from one made by the Siamese government in 1870.

A map of the administrative divisions of Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula. The mountains of western Sumatra and the central Malay Peninsula are represented by hachures: short lines/dashes that give a sense of the shape and steepness of terrain.

Two maps of the Dutch East Indies, decorated with drawings of local people and animals. Dutch colonial territory and local sultanates and provinces are highlighted. The heights of Java’s mountains and settlements are displayed in an elevation view.

Map of the Riouw (Riau) Residency, Sumatra. The border between Riau and the island’s west coast is marked in red ‘as far as it is known [voor zoo verre die... bekend is]’, ending abruptly in the unexplored mountains near Lake Toba, northern Sumatra.

This map of mainland Southeast Asia has colour-coded borders: Burmah (Myanmar) in red, Siam (Thailand) in brown, and Anam (Vietnam) in green. The British territory of Penang is also bordered in red. Independent areas are bordered in grey.

On this hand-drawn and coloured map of Asia, the colours differentiate the colonial territories of the European powers: for example, New Guinea is divided into Dutch, British and German areas, and Borneo is split between the British and Dutch.

On this map of Southeast Asia, borders are outlined and cities underlined in different colours to show the colonial territories of the European powers. On Borneo, the names of indigenous peoples are listed (‘Dayak’s, Papua’s, Bugi’s’).